"I don't think we miss him" - Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca makes honest claim about Joao Felix after Brighton loss

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has claimed his side do not miss Joao Felix despite their struggles in attack. His comments came after the Blues were knocked out of the FA Cup following their 2-1 loss against Brighton & Hove Albion at the Falmer Stadium in the fourth round (February 8).

Felix represented Chelsea during a six-month loan spell during the 2022-23 campaign. The Blues then signed him from Atletico Madrid on a seven-year deal for a reported transfer fee of €52 million last summer. Unfortunately. the 25-year-old struggled for game time under Maresca. He was limited to just 20 appearances across all competitions, playing 947 minutes on the pitch, despite scoring seven goals and providing two assists.

This resulted in Felix joining Serie A titans AC Milan on a loan deal until the end of the season on February 4. However, with Nicolas Jackson and Marc Guiu sidelined with injuries, Chelsea are short on options up front. Despite this following their loss against Brighton, Maresca adamantly said (via Daily Mirror):

"I don't think we miss João. He's happy there [Milan] and we're happy that he's happy. Two injuries on the last day of the transfer window. It's a tough one. Nico [Jackson] could be back soon. Sometimes I think we need to play a few games without certain players to realise their importance.”

From the aforementioned source, Maresca recently revealed he let Felix leave on loan due to a lack of game time at Stamford Bridge, crediting the latter for his professionalism.

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Chelsea fall to 2-1 defeat against Brighton in FA Cup clash

Chelsea's hopes of winning silverware this season were dealt a further blow after they were knocked out of the FA Cup following their 2-1 defeat against Brighton.

The Blues got off to a strong start with Cole Palmer's volley across the goal resulting in Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen scoring an own goal (5'). However, the Seagulls responded quickly seven minutes later when Georginio Rutter headed home to level the scores.

Both sides had some decent opportunities to take the lead but it was Brighton who made it 2-1 in the 57th minute. Kaoru Mitoma brilliantly controlled the ball using his chest before firing past Robert Sanchez. The Blues were unable to find a late equalizer as they crashed out of the FA Cup.

Chelsea will be aiming to exact revenge against Brighton when they face each other again in their upcoming Premier League clash (February 14).